Album Of The Week- Monster Magnet,Dopes To Infinity

Whilst undoubtedly a major departure from the Hawkwind worship of the doped up space lords,Monster Magnet,Dopes To Infinity is a more approachable gateway into heavy riffs and psychedelic sounds for those new to stoner rock.

 

Dopes To Infinity has a much more 'song' oriented approach than the strung out,space jams of previous Monster Magnet records,and proved to be the key to success for the band. The heavy riffs are (for the most part) retained,and the weird and wonderful sounds still bounce from speaker to speaker,however this record brought much more focus into more approachable song structures and more meaningful lyrical content,most likely in the wave that followed the Seattle explosion. Gone are the 32 minute drone riffs and the vocals so washed in delays and phaser that words are indistinguishable, and in it's place are some profound messages and solid riffing. The album is cleverly sewn together, allowing songs to be broken up into chunks,whilst still maintaining a cohesive piece that stoners dig.I wish I could say I saw these Lords Of Light,live in full glory,but unfortunately Dave Wyndorf (frontman) is essentially a show piece in the Monster Magnet of today,also known as the lazy old man experience.
Recommended for grungers looking for something a little more,or those lose looking to venture into stoner rock.Yes,there was something going on outside Seattle in the 90's.
Negasonic Teenage Warhead
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aKj5cJ9_KSg
Third Alternative: Some dope heavy guitar going on here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7Ndw1GO7RI

Q&A with Lucas Skinner- King Gizzard & Lizard Wizard,Atolls

I can still remember the very first time I met Lucas.My very first band had just finished our first gig,and Lucas' then band,The Houses were on after us at the Anglesea pub's young band night.The Houses then proceeded to completely blow my crappy AC/DC cover out of the water.
5 years on,and Lucas is a long way from a boring pub in the middle of no where,as bass player for Melbourne surf/garage group King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard,a band about which I'm sure enough has been said already.With the release of 12 Bar Bruise not too far away,and a new side project, Atolls, in the works,I asked Lucas a few questions via email.

What instrument did you start on,and what do you play now?
I first learnt classical guitar when I was 8, but I didn't really last long. I just learnt for the sake of learning an instrument. It wasn't until I was about 12 that I actually started listening to and getting into good music and wanting to be able to play it. So I started lessons again (not classical) and learnt how to read tabs and started to write my own music.
What instrument did you start on,and what do you play now?

I started learning guitar first, then bought a cheap bass when we kicked out the bass player of my first band and I kinda took over that role. That was a natural progression from guitar and I really dug the bass - which I still do - I guess that's what I play most in bands at the moment. I learnt piano for a couple of years too and I love playing the it in all it's forms - organ/synth.
When was your first gig and how'd it go?
It was at Courthouse Youth Arts Centre in Geelong. It went pretty well, we had a small crowd of close friends and it was a very exciting and new experience.

What drives you to play? What motivates you to go that extra mile to play music?

Playing live is fucking exciting - I know it's a cliché but you just lose yourself in this weird headspace full of adrenaline. Recording is different but just as rewarding - it can be a slow, tiresome process sometimes but persistence pays off. I labour over recording my songs - I love meticulously layering them for hours. I guess that's my artistic process and I find it progressive and rewarding.
Best gig you've played? Worst?

Best - Opening Meredith last year to definitely the biggest crowd I've ever played to. It's the only gig I've ever been ridiculously nervous for - butterflies and everything. It meant a lot to us to play on that stage - we've seen some of my all time favourite musicians and artists on stages so it was an honour and privilege. Just being backstage and in bandcamp was scary/exciting. 

Worst - there's actually fucking tons, I can't nail it down to one. You gotta play a hell of a lot of shit gigs when you're starting out - and you still get em every now and then, and they can be fucking demoralising. But the good ones make it worth it.

Fucking Elephants-Fucking aces

Influences:

What are your top 5 albums?

Neutral Milk Hotel - In an Aeroplane Over The Sea

This album, musically and lyrically is the most expressive thing I've heard. I can't describe it, just listen to it right now. 

Animal Collective - Feels

This album broke a lot of rules for me and opened my eyes to endless experimentation and creativity. The first song I heard was Purple Bottle - It was like nothing I've never heard before. 

Smog - Knock Knock

Amazing Songwriter - ominous, deep voice. Classic album 

Neil Young - Everybody Knows this is Nowhere.

I could literally stem most of my lead guitar style to Down by the River and nothing else. Such an influence album for me.

T-Rex - Electric Warrior.

Amazing album, so definitive of Marc Bolan's sound.

I feel like this could change if you ask me next week - It's too hard to nail a list like this down.
What's the best gig you've ever seen?

Most recently would be Charles Bradley at Plains. I literally had a panic attack halfway through "Lovin' You, Baby".

What have you been listening to lately?
I recently discovered My Bloody Valentine and I fucking love em - been listening to Loveless on repeat. I've also been listening to heaps of Soul - motown/stax and everything good. Also a lot of old school Reggae and Ska - compilations from the Jamaican Label called studio one - they did reggae covers of soul hits and there's some gems in there.

What's a band you dig that no one would expect you would like?
I dig tasteful electro pop and can really appreciate when button pushers do it well - I listen to Toro Y Moi, Baths, James Blake and Ratatat a lot.

King Gizzard:

The bloody Ripper single was a bit of a curveball (edit:In a good way),whilst Elbow fits right alongside the festy garage/surf rock Gizzard are known for.With a new album just around the corner,are there many surprises in store,and what have you done to keep things fresh?

I guess it was a bit different for what we've become known for - I think we just wanted to go with something poppier for a single and people didn't expect it. I still think it's a brutal song, it just has some nice pop sensibilities. I guess it's cool that we've got some kind of reputation/expectation - but at the same time that's kind of annoying too -  regardless we'll always write and record the music we want to. The album is pretty varied, I think I've listened to it too much to judge it critically - but I'm proud of what we've done. I'm looking forward to what people have to say about it.

From what I gather,in the early days of the band,the song writing was as simplistic as possible to cope with a fluctuating line up.Now that a more rigid,committed line up is in place,do you find yourselves still writing for simplicity,or do you really try and use such a large band to it's full potential?

 Yeah early days the structures were so simple - our songs literally had a quiet and a loud part. We still write as a 3 piece and the structures are more varied and interesting. We write all the other parts through overdubs while recording then everyone learns their parts kinda one by one to ready them for the live context. So yeah we definitely try to use all the instruments smarter rather than to be loud - not to say we don't use it for that as well.

Looking beyond the album,is there anything exciting planned?
We're touring in Sep/Oct which is always a bunch of fun. We've already started recording a new album - it'll be very different.

Cover art for King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard's new album, 12 Bar Bruise,out on Sept.7th,with a big arse tour to go with it.Artwork by Jason Galea

Atolls:

I know pretty much nothing about this band.Fill us in?
We've recorded a single and a b-side which we're gonna release in mid Sep and Launch in Oct. I guess Atolls is my creative pursuit - I've never been the principal songwriter/frontman in a band and that's what this is - I've been slowly writing new songs and we're in the process of getting a set together to start gigging which will be fun. As for genre, my brother described it very aptly:
Atolls’ sound is built on shifting layers of loops and fuzz, with lead breaks purling out of hissing feedback, like Dinosaur Jr. played through a torn speaker cone. Weird ambient undercurrents swirl under hazy guitar squall. But pop melodies beat down this wall of noise – they’re oddly familiar but kind of cracked and offbeat like Woods or Ty Segal. Atolls’ debut single – Mumble – drops on 17th September and some pretty wild and compelling live shows will follow its release.
The Musical thing:
For this I asked Lucas to send me a photo of  something cool and music related

I recently got this Santo & Johnny record - I've been looking for it for ages. It's a 1958 original. Everywhere I've seen it online it's usually around $100 but I found it cheap. Definitely one of my favourite surf guitar records - my guitar teacher was a surf nut which rubbed off on me a lot. This record has the original version of "Sleepwalk" which is just a the dreamiest fucking thing I've ever heard. I want a lap steel but I reckon they'd be hard to play.

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard Links:
They have shirts and albums and shit for sale-get around it.I bought their last album and it came with a photo of Lucas tucked into the sleeve,signed on the back with 'Lets kiss,xox,Lucas'
http://kinggizzardandthelizardwizard.com/
http://www.facebook.com/kinggizzardandthelizardwizard
Atolls:
http://www.facebook.com/atollsband

Many thanks to Lucas for taking the time to have a chat.
If you don't go along to a Gizzard show in their up-coming tour,there's something wrong with you
September 8th @ The Nash
October 6 & 7th @ The Tote

Album Of The Week-Earthless,Rhythms From A Cosmic Sky

Are you looking at the Meredith line-up and saying to yourself,'who the hell is Earthless?'
Then look no further,for Earthless are the bomb

If I had to sum up San Diego three piece Earthless in one line,I would quote a very drunk Cory Balloch on the topic of what guitarists do-'they just go man'.Rhythms From A Cosmic Sky takes the crazy acid jams of  late 60's and early 70's and ramps it up a notch,with each track going for 20 minutes,and I get the feeling they would go longer if you could fit that much music onto one side of a 12" LP.How many 12 year old kids say they want to be a rock star,or a professional skater? Well,drummer Mario Rubalcaba is both-pretty fucking boss hey?
The real chops in the group lay in guitarist Isaiah Mitchell.I'm fairly convinced he has something super human about him.He can noodle away at an epic guitar solo the entire time,and yet every lick is just as tasty as the last,without going overboard into flashy shred territory.
Highly recommended for fans of Hendrix,Cream,Zeppelin,Wolfmother,etc.
Touring nationally in December.
As the album is only 3 tracks,I'll put them all up here
Godspeed-The bees fucking knees
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_05oqmdjfUc
Sonic Prayer
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNsmRDUoMyQ&feature=related
Cherry Red-Bonus track,a cover,and the only Earthless track to feature vocals
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvqgz9hbBMQ

Smalltownextra: I've been lacking in the reviews/interviews lately,but I have a Bloody Ripper of an interview lined up
Stay tuned

Stay tuned for something groovey

Sorry for the slowdown,but real life is more important at the moment.
But never fear,I've got something cool in the works
Till then,enjoy Thee Oh Sees King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
http://soundcloud.com/king-gizzard/elbow

Album Of The Week-Sungrazer,Mirador

Straight up Psychedelic Stoner Rock.No one does it better than Europeans.

Sungrazer's album Mirador,which followed on from their earlier effort,a self titled E.P takes the Netherlands finest 3 piece and gives them an endless platform on which to lay down their groovey tunes,creating mellow vibes that are under pinned by strong riffs and a heavy rhythm.If you know Colour Haze,you will love Mirdaor.Sungrazer create that same heavy,psychedelic,almost blues based jamming of Colour Haze,Kyuss or even something similar to Hendrix and kick in the fuzz.Mirdaor sees the band extend out the riffage of the self titled and go further into the psychedelic realm.Would recommend for fans Wolfmother's first album

Behind- A long journey through some soft guitars and into some tight stoner rock

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrAVSTUGl-Q

Mirador- A dam fine drum beat that welds itself to the bass,and guitars that swim in pools of delay

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTW5LKYxvDg 

On another topic-Live review of The Matt Sonic and the High Times playing Kyuss didn't come together due to school pressures.Sorry about that one.

Album Of The Week- Toner Low,II

Floor shakingly heavy,creepy Dutch doom metal.Try to imagine Sleep or Sunn 0))) writing a soundtrack to a horror movie,and you've got Toner Low's II.

Toner Low play doom metal with an extra element that I can't quite put my finger on.Often using strange sounds,and make scarce use of vocals,Toner Low use some good production to make doom metal that really is an artwork.II is a darker,more menacing feel to it than the previous record,a self titled.The album is split up into four tracks that a sub-divided into separate 'movements' if you like,which is a bit of a pain,but it all flows together nicely.Some really strange vocal sounds make lyrics almost indistinguishable from the colossal mountains of guitars and the deep,DEEP powerful bass,accompanied by some fairly metronomic drums.Track two features a solo saxophone section,not something one would expect in a genre like this,before powering into some riffs that could easily fit into Dopesmoker or Holy Mountain.Track four features some super creepy story telling,much like Murphy's Law off their last album,and a dope heavy build into the mondo.
For fans of Electric Wizard,Sleep,Sunn 0)),etc,etc
Track I
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2KNmu8H5p5M
Fast forwarded past the first song,track II
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tyt1n0hy9wI&feature=player_detailpage#t=272s

Review-Om,Advaitic Songs

Never before have you heard distorted,doom metal bass work with Cello,or Arabic Female vocals.Om truly push new territory,following on from the major leap made in their last album God Is Good.

Who are these trippers I hear you ask?
Om were a two peice,formed from the suspicious ashes of Stoner/Doom Legends Sleep.With just drums,bass and vocals,the band played doom metal that was structured like Tibetan Chanting,and lyrics touching on mystical,ancient religious themes.After taking on new drummer Emil Amos in 2008,the band has taken a new direction,recently becoming a 3 piece with the addition of Robert Lowe.Now using sitars,cello's and flutes,and occasionally kicking in the overdrive for some sabbath worship,Advaitic Songs is hard to understand at first.
Most bands write an album all in the one language.Not Om.Opening track,Addis, begins with a solo female vocalist,providing some hypnotic middle eastern gibberish (I'm sure it actually means something pretty mind blowing),before the band kicks in with drums,bass,tabla and cello.Truly unlike anything they have previously written.
It's not until track two,State Of Non-Return,that we hear some of the heavy drum/bass riffage that the band are known for,however in a slightly different way,the song ending on some fantastic,natural melodies combined with the that Cisneros rhythm.
Track 4,Sinai,is where things really start to make sense for me.Once again starting with some mysterious language, accompanied by
ethereal noises,but the deep rumblings of a Rickenbacker provide a complete drop into the void of Cisnerosity.
At times,it can feel as though the band are taking the whole religious/middle eastern theme a little be too seriously,the meaning of which is very easily lost on the listener.Perhaps the band has moved a little too far forward,as though there's some kind of missing album in between Advaitic Songs and the previous effort,God Is Good,that would demonstrate the progression to the current release.After more than a few listens,the picture becomes clearer,with some rich textures and fantastic use of melody,an element which previous Om records have been almost completely devoid of.If you were expecting another Conference Of The Birds,with its minimalist Doom metal,you will be disappointed.Take the time however to let it sink in,you will realise just how 'heavy' this record is,despite being not heavy at all in the traditional sense.
With this album,Om hold the flag of a curious offshoot from the Stoner/Doom genre,joined by bands like Earth and Grails (of whom Emil Amos is a founding member).This stream is moving away from the C tuned,deep,distorted heavy vibe of the past and ushering a completely different approach,using acoustic and world instruments to create the same,heavy,droning feel,but in a completely relaxed way.
I would have loved to have heard more of a marriage of the traditional heaviness with with this deep,textured vibe the band now has,but it's wrong to expect anything of such progressive musicians,who are always one step ahead,keeping it fresh and interesting.Rather,just sit back and enjoy what the band has created.